This TuesdayNo. 24 Creighton Volleyball (4-1) plays its lone mid-week match of the season when it hosts Kansas (4-2) on Tuesday night. First serve at D.J. Sokol Arena inside the Wayne and Eileen Ryan Athletic Center (2,500) is set for 6 pm.

Radio InformationScheduled radio coverage for Tuesday’s game has been cancelled.

Video InformationTuesday’s match will be video webcast, and include audio from Erin Russell. To sign up, visit www.gocreighton.com and click on the Live Video tab on the top menu bar. A 4-month subscription costs $34.95, while a monthly subscription costs $10.95 per month. Fans can also purchase a 24-hour pass ($4.99) or a 48-hour pass ($5.99) that begins the moment you sign up.

Live Stats InformationTuesday’s match will have free live stats. Visit www.gocreighton.com and click on the Live Stats tab on the top of the page for the exact link. Live stats are also available on your mobile phone by clicking on www.gocreightonstats.com.

Scouting #24 CreightonCreighton opened the 2013 season with a title at the Hampton Inn Invitational, picking up wins over No. 13 BYU (3-1) and host Bowling Green (3-0). Last weekend, Creighton took second at the Bluejay Invitational in Omaha, sweeping Northern Colorado and South Florida before being losing to tournament champion California. CU boasts a balanced attack, with five women averaging multiple kills per set. That group is led by outside hitters Leah McNary (3.06 kps.), Jess Bird (2.75 kps., 3.38 dps.) and Melanie Jereb (2.69 kps., 3.12 dps.). Setter Michelle Sicner (10.50 aps, 3.62 dps, 1.50 kps.) directs CU’s offense. The Bluejays returned four starters plus libero Kate Elman from last year’s team that finished 29-4 overall, won the Missouri Valley Conference with a 17-1 league record, and finished 24th in the year-end AVCA poll. Creighton was picked to win the BIG EAST Conference, while Kelli Browning, Jereb and McNary were named preseason all-league picks. Creighton averages 14.25 kills, 1.38 aces, 17.44 digs and 3.00 blocks per set while hitting .233 as a team.

Scouting KansasKansas is 4-2 on the season, including a 3-0 mark in road matches. KU owns wins vs. Arizona, UMKC, Arkansas and Morgan State, but has lost to Central Arkansas and Arkansas this year. Senior MB Caroline Jarmoc paces the Jayhawks with 3.76 kills per set and 1.28 blocks per set. She was named a Second Team All-American last year after setting a KU record with a .386 attack percentage. Second on the team in kills is Millard North product Sara McClinton (3.23 kps., .267%). McClinton was a high school teammate of CU’s Michelle Sicner and earned All-Big 12 honors last fall. Setter Erin McNorton (12.12 aps., 2.36 dps.) had a career-high 67 assists in last year’s win vs. Creighton, while libero Brianne Riley (4.56 dps.)had 33 digs in the same contest. Last season the Jayhawks went 26-7 and finished third in the Big 12 Conference. Four starters and a libero are among 12 letterwinners from that team. KU averages 14.24 kills, 1.16 aces, 16.32 digs and 2.40 blocks per set on .239 hitting.

The CoachesCreighton is coached by Kirsten Bernthal Booth (Truman State, 1997), who owns a 191-120 record in her 11th season with the Bluejays. She became the program’s all-time winningest coach on Aug. 25, 2007 with a 3-0 win over Stephen F. Austin and joined the 100-win club with an Oct. 31, 2008 win at Drake. She was named the 2010 CVU.com National Coach of the Year after leading Creighton to the second round during its first NCAA Tournament appearance, and named the CaptainU College Coach of the Year in 2012 following another run to the second round of the NCAA’s. Last season, Booth helped Creighton move into the top-25 for the first time in program history while also leading the team to a program-record 29 wins and first-ever MVC regular-season and tournament titles. For her efforts, she was named 2012 MVC Coach of the Year. Booth came to Creighton after going 112-41 in three years at Kirkwood Community College in Cedar Rapids, Iowa. A native of Lincoln, Neb., Booth played volleyball at Truman State, where she was named conference MVP, an Academic All-American and Missouri’s 1997 NCAA Woman of the Year. She ranked third in Division II history with 6,077 assists when she graduated. Booth is helped by assistant coaches Tom Mendoza and Angie Oxley Behrens and volunteer assistant Amanda (Gates) Sjuts. Kansas is coached by Ray Bechard, who is 252-213 in his 16th year at the school, and 968-271 in 29 years overall as a head coach. He’s assisted by Laura Kuhn, Todd Chamberlain and Wendel Camargo.

Series History vs. KansasKansas has won all five previous matches against Creighton since CU reinstituted volleyball in 1994, claiming victories in 2002 (3-0 in Omaha), 2003 (3-0 in Lawrence), 2009 (3-1 in Lawrence), 2010 (3-1 in Omaha) and 2012 (3-2 in Lawrence). Last season in Lawrence, Kansas won the first two sets and Creighton won the next two sets before KU won the fifth frame, 15-13. Kelli Browning had 15 kills and 11 blocks in the contest for CU, while Caroline Jarmoc had 22 kills and Brianne Riley 33 digs for the Jayhawks. Creighton head coach Kirsten Bernthal Booth is 0-4 against Kansas and Ray Bechard.

Last Weekend SummaryCreighton went 2-1 at the Bluejay Invitational, defeating Northern Colorado (3-0) and South Florida (3-0) before being swept by California in the title match. Melanie Jereb and Leah McNary were named to the All-Tournament Team for Creighton.

Nebraskans Return HomeKansas has three Nebraska natives returning to their home state on Tuesday. KU’s roster includes Papillion native Chelsea Albers, Omaha’s Sara McClinton and Lincoln’s Maggie Anderson. Albers attended Papillion-La Vista High School, McClinton attended Millard North High School, and Anderson went to Lincoln Southwest High School. While at Millard North, McClinton was a teammate of current Creighton setter Michelle Sicner.

One Of The BestCreighton’s been on quite a run since the start of last season to rank among the nation’s best clubs. Combine a 29-4 campaign in 2012 with this year’s 4-1 start and Creighton is 33-5. The 33-5 mark gives the Jays a .868 win percentage in that span, tied for third nationally behind only Penn State and Hawai’i. Creighton’s 33 wins in the same span rank tied for seventh nationally.Best Win Percentages, Since 2012 (thru 9/8/13)Name W L Pct.Penn State 36 4 .900Hawai’i 32 4 .889Creighton 33 5 .868Texas 33 5 .868Southern California 36 6 .857Central Arkansas 36 6 .857Florida 32 6 .842Florida State 32 6 .842North Carolina 32 6 .842Stanford 32 6 .842

Strong Schedule AheadCreighton has never been shy about putting together a challenging schedule under Kirsten Bernthal Booth. In fact, each of Creighton’s next 16 matches (from now until Nov. 1) are against teams currently .500 or better.

All-Tourney DuoCreighton had a pair of players named to the Bluejay Invitational All-Tournament Team, Leah McNary and Melanie Jereb. McNary and Jereb shared team-best honors with 26 kills last weekend. Jereb hit .221 and added three aces and 20 digs, while McNary was second on the team with eight blocks in nine sets played.

Multiple ChoiceThrough two weekend tournaments, Creighton has had five players earn All-Tournament Team honors once, but no one’s been chosen twice. Week one saw Michelle Sicner earn MVP honors and join Kelli Browning and Lauren Smith on the All-Tournament Team at the Hampton Inn Invitational, while Melanie Jereb and Leah McNary earned All-Tourney accolades at last weekend’s Bluejay Invitational.

Use The FoursCreighton went 13-2 last season in four-set matches. According to numbers crunched by Rich Kern of RichKern.com fame, the 13 four-set wins led the country in 2012, one more than Georgia Southern. This year’s team is 1-0 in four-set matches, while Creighton’s other four contests were sweeps. Tuesday’s opponent, Kansas, has played five sets twice, four sets three times, and three sets just once.

Familiar FaceKansas OH Catherine Carmichael enters Tuesday’s match third on the team with 59 kills and fourth on the Jayhawk club with 12 blocks. She is the sister of former Illinois State men’s basketball standout Jackie Carmichael. Carmichael ranks first all-time in Illinois State history in blocks (200), eighth in scoring (1,580) and third in rebounds (942) and double-doubles (35). As a senior, Carmichael averaged 17.4 points and a team-high 9.3 rebounds and 2.1 blocks in 33 games while earning first-team all-MVC honors.

Have You Heard?Freshman OH Jess Bird made an immediate impact in her first tournament. Bird had a match-high 14 kills and added 12 digs in Creighton’s 3-1 win over No. 13 BYU on August 30th. Bird’s 14 kills were the most ever for a player making their Creighton debut, one more than the 13 by JoDe Cieloha in 1994. Bird’s double-double made her the fourth player in CU history to debut with a double-double, but first with a kill-dig double-dip since Cieloha also did it in 1994. The last CU player with a double-double debut had been setter Korie Lebeda (39 assists, 10 digs) in 2005. Bird added 10 kills in her second career match, joining Cieloha as the second player in CU history with double-digit kills to start a career. Cieloha did it in eight straight matches to begin her career. Bird enters the Kansas match averaging 2.75 kills and 3.38 digs per set. By comparison, Melanie Jereb averaged 2.00 kills and 2.35 digs per set after her first five matches as a freshman last year when she was named first-team All-MVC.

No Ordinary SmithRedshirt freshman MB Lauren Smith averaged 2.57 kills and 0.71 blocks per set while hitting a league-best .531 at the season-opening Hampton Inn Invitational. As a result, she became the second CU freshman in program history to earn All-Tournament Team honors in her first event as a collegian, joining JoDe Cieloha in 1994. Smith had nine kills in 14 errorless swings to hit .643 in her debut, a 3-1 win vs. No. 13 BYU. She added four blocks in the win over the highest-ranked team Creighton has ever beaten. The following morning, Smith once again had nine kills on .444 hitting while adding a block and two digs in a 3-0 sweep at Mid-American Conference favorite Bowling Green. Smith is the only CU player ever with nine or more kills on .350 or better hitting in each of the first two matches of her career.

Some Fab FreshmenIncluding Jess Bird on Aug. 30 vs. BYU, Creighton has started six true freshmen in a season opener in the last four years, and 12 such players since 2000. Since 2000, the only true freshmen to start CU’s season-opener have been Brittany Coleman (2003), Carolyn Decker (2004), Korie Lebeda (2005), Allie Oelke (2007), Brooke Boggs (2009), Heather Thorson (2009), Julianne Mandolfo (2010), Katie Neisler (2011), Michelle Sicner (2011), Melanie Jereb (2012), Ashley Jansen (2012) and Bird (2013). Seven of those 11 women (Coleman, Decker, Lebeda, Oelke, Mandolfo, Sicner and Jereb) went on to land a spot on the MVC’s All-Freshman Team.

Regular-Season Tournament HistoryCreighton is 72-71 in the 48 regular-season tournaments it has participated in all-time, including a 12-2 mark since the start of last season. Kirsten Bernthal Booth’s teams are 52-38 in 32 regular-season tournaments, including eight titles. Creighton won two regular-season tournaments last season, taking the season-opening USF Invitational as well as the Northern Colorado Classic, before claiming this year’s Hampton Inn Invitational. Creighton had won just two of 16 regular-season tournaments prior to Booth’s arrival.

Home Streak EndsCreighton Volleyball had its school-record home win streak of 13 straight home wins snapped in Saturday night’s loss to California. CU is now 14-2 at home the past two seasons, with both setbacks coming during the Bluejay Invitational. Creighton is also now 31-4 in its last 35 home matches against unranked competition. All four of Creighton’s streaks of six straight home wins or longer have been snapped in the Bluejay Invitational.Creighton’s Longest Home Win StreaksWins Dates Snapped By 13 Sept. 1, 2012 - Sept. 7, 2013 California, 3-0 8 Sept. 25-Nov. 20, 2010 Northern Illinois, 3-0 7 Oct. 17, 2008-Aug. 28, 2009 #10 Illinois, 3-0 6 Oct. 22, 2005-Sept. 2, 2006 Iowa, 3-2

The Votes Add UpCreighton had six matches scheduled against teams that received votes in the preseason AVCA Top 25 poll, including five teams in the top-25. Creighton plays matches against teams that were preseason ranked No. 11 (Hawai’i), No. 12 (UCLA), No. 13 (BYU), No. 20 (Kansas) and No. 24 (Wichita State). Creighton also hosted Cal, which received enough points to finish 37th in the voting. Even after two difficult weeks, three of Creighton’s next seven contests come against teams receiving votes in the Sept. 9th AVCA Top 25 poll (Cal State Northridge, UCLA, Hawai’i). Among teams in the preseason top-25, Creighton’s five non-conference matches vs. top-25 foes was tied for the national lead with Texas, Hawai’i, Florida State and Western Kentucky.

2-0 Better Than 0-2Creighton is 183-8 (.958) all-time when leading a match 2-0, including a 125-2 mark under Kirsten Bernthal Booth. They own an 86-4 all-time mark in home matches they lead 2-0 in. Conversely, the Jays are 7-172 (.039) all-time when trailing a match 0-2, including an 0-59 mark in those home matches. Those seven comebacks from down 0-2 are listed below:Date Opponent Sets 3-5 scores Coach09/19/97 at Bradley 15-11, 15-13, 15-8 Wallace10/01/99 at Drake 15-6, 17-15, 15-11 Wallace09/03/04 vs. Montana 30-20, 30-21, 15-11 Booth10/15/04 at Bradley 30-22, 30-23, 15-11 Booth10/15/05 at So. Illinois 30-25, 30-24, 15-8 Booth09/21/07 at No. Iowa 31-29, 30-26, 15-12 Booth11/16/12 at Wichita St. 25-16, 25-20, 16-14 Booth

Survival of the FittestCreighton has won six matches under Kirsten Bernthal Booth after surviving an opponent’s match point. Three of those wins have come against Wichita State. On the other hand, Creighton is 191-1 under Booth when it reaches a match point opportunity, falling only when it wasted two match points on Sept. 4, 2010 to Iowa in an eventual 20-18 fifth set loss.Surviving Match Points, Under BoothDate Opponent MP(s) Faced Final Set 508/30/03 vs. McNeese State 13-14, 15-16 18-1610/10/03 Wichita State 13-14 16-1410/13/06 at Wichita State 12-14, 13-14, 14-15 17-1509/11/07 at Drake 13-14, 14-15 17-1508/26/11 vs. UTSA 12-14, 13-14 16-1411/16/12 at Wichita State 13-14 16-14

Booth Picks Up Win 300Kirsten Bernthal Booth enters this week with 303 career college wins. She picked up victory No. 300 on Aug. 30 vs. No. 13 BYU. Booth claimed 112 wins at Kirkwood (Iowa) Junior College and has won 191 matches since arriving at Creighton in 2003. Booth’s 191 wins at Creighton are 123 more than the previous recordholder in CU’s modern (since 1994 reinstatement) era held by Howard Wallace.

BIG EAST Preseason PollCreighton has been picked to win the BIG EAST Conference in a preseason poll of league coaches. CU received 63 points in the poll and seven of a possible eight first-place votes. Marquette received the remained votes for first place and was second with 57 points, while Xavier was third with 50 points. Creighton also led the way with three of the 12 members on the BIG EAST’s preseason all-conference team, a trio that included Kelli Browning, Melanie Jereb and Leah McNary. Browning was named Co-Preseason Player of the Year, an honor she shared with Marquette setter Elizabeth Koberstein. This is the first time that Creighton Volleyball has ever been picked to win its league, and the school’s first team picked to win the BIG EAST in any sport.Radio Broadcast InformationBrad Burwell and former Bluejay volleyball player Erin (Swanson) Russell will broadcast at least nine home matches this season. The matches will air on KZOT (1180 AM) and KOIL (1290 AM) and be webcast online at www.gocreighton.com as well. The pre-match show typically starts approximately 5-15 minutes before first serve. The post-match show also lasts about 15 minutes and includes post-match interviews. A complete list of remaining matches follows:2013 Volleyball Broadcast ScheduleOct. 11 DePaul (KOIL 1290 AM)Oct. 13 Marquette (KZOT 1180 AM)Oct. 18 Xavier (KOIL 1290 AM)Oct. 20 Butler (KZOT 1180 AM)Nov. 3 Seton Hall (KZOT 1180 AM)Nov. 22 Georgetown (KOIL 1290 AM)

Set 1 Result = Match ResultCreighton is 162-18 overall under Kirsten Bernthal Booth when it wins set one. In that same time span, CU is just 27-102 under Booth when it drops the first set. Creighton went 24-1 last season when winning the opening set of a match. The season-ending loss to Minnesota was the first time all season that it lost after leading a match after any completed set.

Last Year SummaryLast year’s team finished 29-4 while compiling one of the best seasons from any women’s team in Creighton history. The Bluejays closed their 19-year run in the MVC by winning the program’s first Valley regular-season and Tournament titles. CU won early-season tournaments at USF and Northern Colorado before clinching the outright league crown with a memorable 3-2 comeback win at rival Wichita State. The Jays would sweep the Shockers eight days later for the Valley Tourney title, and sweep Marquette to open NCAA Tournament play before falling at Minnesota.Megan Bober was named MVC Player of the Year and Tournament MVP, while Kelli Browning was tabbed MVC Defensive Player of the Year. Both women were named Honorable Mention All-Americans and were joined on the All-MVC First Team by Melanie Jereb. Kirsten Bernthal Booth was named MVC Coach of the Year and CaptainU National Coach of the Year. Creighton spent four weeks in the AVCA Top 25 for the first time, reaching as high as No. 21 before finishing No. 24.